Wang, a Maltese adventurer and co-founder of crypto companies f2pool and skatefish, selected the rest of the crew: vehicle commander Jannicke Mikkelsen, a Norwegian film director; mission pilot Rabea Rogge, a robotics researcher from Germany; and mission specialist and medical officer Eric Philps, an Australian polar explorer.
The team trained for eight months in preparation for the four-day trip, including a wilderness expedition in Alaska to simulate living in close quarters under harsh conditions.
Upon returning to Earth, the crew will attempt to exit the spacecraft without additional medical support; part of a study to help researchers understand how well astronauts can perform basic tasks after spaceflight.
Except for the Apollo lunar missions, Earth’s polar regions have remained out of view for astronauts, including those aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Even on Apollo they did not fly directly over the Earth’s poles.
SpaceX has carried out five private astronaut missions to date: three in collaboration with Axiom Space to the ISS, and two free-flying in Earth orbit.
The first of these was Inspiration4 in 2021, followed by Polaris Dawn, which featured the first spacewalk conducted by private astronauts.
Both free-flying missions were chartered by e-payments billionaire Jared Isaacman, a close associate of SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk, who has also been nominated by United States President Donald Trump to serve as the next Nasa administrator.